The Strange Incident of Pururu and Urvashi / Parashurama Ji Destroying Enemies // 11/09/26

From the auspicious lips of Pujya Maharaj Ji: The character of the devoted one — hear the complete story in the video above.

Complete Discourse

O Goddess of Vrindavan, your lotus feet are filled with the nectar of love, complete, heart full, O honey-keeper, remembering you, enchanted, without doubt, supremely peaceful shelter, supremely peaceful shelter [sound of groaning] supremely sat-chit-ananda and the form of prema-ananda, newly dwelling in the Divine bower, the most glorious, the most pure Shri Vrindavan Dham, Shri Vrindavan Dham of the beloved Divine couple of Braj, worthy of worship, dear to the heart, Shri Shyama Shyam, who all the companions, birds, deer, animals, birds, trees and creepers, the Yamuna river, the queen, the majesty, all residents of Braj, please O Lord, we are in your refuge. O Lord, only you can save us from this great illusion-like world.

No, despite deciding again and again, we have been defeated. Wherever we try to rise, wherever, Maya creates such delusion. Helpless, the attraction to the objects of desire keeps pulling us down. O Lord, only through your strength can we escape. We will sing this song our whole life. We will keep imploring you. Surely one day you will be merciful and look toward us, O Lord. Only from your glance can our welfare come now, there is no other way. O Merciful One, what have I not done, where have I not gone, I have not bowed my head to Ram, without Ram, O Lord, the servant, life after life, I have experienced suffering in all ten directions.

आ अक्षरशा सत्य है जो भ्रम के भुलावे में है उनको भले समझ में ना आवे नहीं अक्षरशा सत्य है
This eternal truth, those lost in illusion may not understand it, this eternal truth.

Goswami Tulsi Das Ji Maharaj is saying:

कहा न किया, कहां न गया, शीश का नीयो, राम रावरे बिन भय जन, जनम जनम जग दुख दसहु द पायो
What have I not done, where have I not gone, I have not bowed my head to Ram, without Ram, O servant, life after life, I have experienced suffering in all ten directions.

विवश खास दास होए नीच प्रभु नी जनायो
Helpless, your chosen servant, lowly, O Lord, this you know.

हाहा करी दीनता कही द्वार द्वार बार-बार परी ना छार मुंह बायो
Crying and lamenting my wretchedness, going to door after door again and again, my mouth opened only to receive dust.

O Lord, what have I not done? I have done everything — both auspicious and inauspicious actions — yet nothing came to my hand. No welfare came. Many births have passed in doing these things. There is no pleasure that I have not experienced, no action that I have not performed. I have gone to different wombs, begged at different feet. Who gave me support? No one. I have bowed my head to everyone. I have not left anyone unbent. But no one stood with me. Why? Because everyone is powerless, overcome by Maya. Only you have the power to free us from Maya's dualities. No one else has it. This is the truth.

Listen to this: what you call sadhana is pride, small petty sadhana you are doing now. You have not yet done sadhana that conquers Maya. You will not know this yet. When true sadhana happens, you will know that you are nothing. Like a machine, God's grace is making you do sadhana. This is what you will experience. As long as you think "I am cleverly doing this," then you are acting from your own nature-born intelligence and that kind of action is not capable of attaining the Supreme.

O Lord, what have I not done, where have I not gone, I have not bowed my head, yet without Ram, O servant, life after life, I have experienced suffering in all ten directions. O Lord, I bowed before everyone but without Ram, O servant, when I was not yet your servant, until then I saw what wretchedness there was. O Lord, until the time I was not called your servant, your dasa, until I had not become your servant, then in the world, through repeated births, I only experienced suffering in all ten directions.

What is happiness? In which door is happiness? Think and see. Those bodies you are attracted to — they are just repositories of filth and excrement. Those pleasures you are attracted to — eating and drinking, within six hours they turn into foul-smelling excrement and urine. Are we not being deceived? For what reason were we given this human body — to attain the sat-chit-ananda bliss? Are we not being cheated? Are not our senses deceiving us, is not our mind trapping us, is not our intellect wasting all our time in delusion? One minute is priceless. This you will know when you become capable of needing oxygen, when you will understand how precious each breath is. You cannot even extend one breath. No matter how much wealth you spend, you cannot buy even one more breath.

Without becoming God's servant, without remembering God, no matter where you spend, nothing will come into your hand. Life after life, suffering in all ten directions. You have wandered and experienced only sorrow wherever you were born. Crying and lamenting, going door to door again and again, my mouth opened but received only dust.

हा करी दीनता कही द्वार द्वार बार-बार परी ना छार मुंह बायो
Crying, lamenting my poverty, going door to door again and again, my mouth received only dust.

विवश खास दास है नीच प्रभु नी जनायो
Helpless, your special servant, lowly, O Lord, you know this.

O Lord, I am your special servant, but deluded by illusion, I sought happiness in worldly objects and called those worldly men my masters. I considered impure-hearted people as my lords. Though I am your special servant, O Lord, due to forgetfulness caused by Maya, I did not recognize you as my master and instead made worldly people my masters. I made impure-hearted ones my lords and repeatedly threw myself at their feet. I went to their doors again and again, spoke of my poverty and suffering, but received only dust in return.

Whatever desire took me there, that desire was never fulfilled. Whether it was a pleasure, whether it was a perversion, whether it was a particular person, I have never found peace until now. Look in your heart. Look at what Goswami Ji is saying: until you became known as God's servant, you kept going around with your mouth open. Never did you find peace. You went to their doors and narrated your condition, your state, but only dust and ashes fell into your mouth.

प्रभु असन बसन बिनु बावररो जहां तहां उठ धायो
O Lord, without food and clothes, the madman ran here and there.

महिमा मान प्रिय प्राण ते तजी खोल खलन आगे खिन खिन पेट खलाायो
He forsook honor, respect, even life for the pleasure of the senses, and kept his belly hungry before those with vices.

Like a madman, always running after sensory pleasures. No concern for honor, no concern for dignity — just pursuing the appetite of the senses. Food to satisfy the stomach — he kept running around trying to fill an insatiable belly. Some charitable person would give him good food, some would give him good clothes. Like a madman he kept running in the world. He had no concern for reputation or status. Just that the appetite of the senses be satisfied, that the belly be filled. How will it ever be filled? How will the senses ever find peace? Never did he find peace.

O Lord, through desire for worldly objects, O Lord, the hand did not grasp anything. Greed kept attracting me. Speak the truth, dance — who is dancing? There is delusion, greed attached, shameless dancing.

O Lord, these worldly desires have made me dance so much. The rhythm of the senses, the intoxication of objects, has kept me dancing shameless, without dignity, without truth.

Oh, what a terrible plight! The greed for these sensory pleasures has caused quite a dance. I speak the truth. It has made me shameless, with absolutely no honour, no dignity. Having forgotten everything, I have bowed my knees at the door of worldly pleasures. This is the plight. Because of lack of knowledge, you cannot see your own plight. The great saints are revealing where this low greed has not bowed the knees, what kinds of dances it has not made us dance.

प्रभु श्रवण नयन मग मन लगे सब थल पततायो मूल मारीह हार के हित हे हारी अबव चरण शरण तक आयो
Lord, the ears, eyes and mind have fallen at every place; the very root is destroyed—oh bestower of blessings, now I have come to the shelter of your feet.

Maharaj, these ears, these eyes, these minds have kept wandering. The ears have never been concentrated in listening to your discourse. The mind has never been absorbed in your bhajan. The eyes have never looked at all with the feeling of seeing the divine in everything. It has wandered so much. I speak the truth, Lord. To the extent I moved toward progress, I fell into decline. I became fallen. I have seen many great ones. From no object, from no one have I received peace. Beating my head, losing heart, I returned again to those same objects, to the same impure people—this has continued from birth to birth. Master, this time the path has been found. When I was very frightened, you gave the path from the heart—the shelter of your feet.

Now I have taken shelter at the feet of your grace, Maharaj. Our well-being lies only in your compassion, only in you. Oh Lord, oh Shri Hari, you are all-powerful.

दशरथ के समर्थ तुम्ही त्रिभुवन जस गायो तुलसी नमत अवलोकिए बाह बोल बलिद वृदावली बुलायो
You alone are the strength of Dashrath; the three worlds sing your glory—Tulsi bows and looks upon you; hear this call of the humble.

Oh God, oh Shri Hari, you are all-powerful. Your glory is in the three worlds, and now Tulsi has taken refuge at your feet. That is, look toward your own glory, not toward us—this is your vow:

जो सभी आवा शरणाई रखो ताह प्राण की नाई
All who come to shelter, keep them like the breath in your being.

I, frightened and tormented by the world, by sensory pleasures, by the attraction of maya, have taken shelter at the feet of you, the all-powerful Lord Shri Hari, and I accept your blessing and bow to you.

I sing your glory like a captive, and your words alone have brought me—that, no matter what kind of person comes, even an enemy of all life, come to my shelter fully; abandon deception, hypocrisy, ego, pride—from that become equal to a saint. Hearing these words of your compassion, faith arose that—we have wandered here and there for many births; now if we give one birth to Hari, then your word, your vow, your nature—this alone is capable of purifying me, the fallen one. The compassionate Lord, friend of the surrendered—all who come to his shelter have found well-being. You have always cared for them. So now we have faith that our well-being, our supreme peace, lies in your Shri feet.

In the entire Vinaya Patrika, Goswami Ji has placed every utterance of his heart, every movement, at the feet of the Lord. Believe the truth: you who are a sadhak, look—sometimes such intensity arises in bhajan, and sometimes in a single moment it falls away and stands in sensory pleasures. What trust is there in our inner heart, and what trust in our sadhana? Trust in this: my entire life I have only seen this. I have seen nothing else. This alone I have seen—the movement of the mind, the nature of intellect. Then I would laugh. What trust can we place in such an intellect, such a mind?

So even then, the one who protects us is the compassionate Lord, friend of the surrendered. Therefore, we remain in the shelter of the Lord alone, with mind, word, and deed. And these three are very powerful: the ear, the tongue, and the eye. One must be careful with them. Goswami Ji has said:

श्रवण नयन मग मन लय सब थल पतितो
Ears, eyes, mind's refuge have fallen at every place.

This drops us down. Seeing, hearing, and speaking—the sadhak must be very careful about these. Look carefully, speak carefully, hear carefully. There is a great effect from hearing, seeing, speaking. Become established in this.

रसना कटो जो अन रटो निरख अन फटो नैन श्रवण फटो जो अन सुनो श्री राधा जस बैन
Cut the tongue that does not speak Radha's name; blind the eyes that do not look on the divine; deaf the ears that do not hear Radha's glory.

For the attainment of supreme peace, give special attention to these three limbs of yours. With speech: silence, the divine name, divine praise, divine discourse, divine conversation. With the eyes: be very careful; in everything, with divine feeling, experience the presence of your chosen deity. If you cannot do this, then keep the eyes lowered, peaceful. With the ears: divine discourse, divine names, divine qualities—hear these. Otherwise, even having ears, remain deaf. If you cannot do this, then take cotton, roll it into balls, press them firmly into the ears so that outside sounds do not reach you. Practice this way. Then it becomes so that no matter how many drums beat, your own contemplation continues. If in you this practice is weak, if you lack the capacity, then you should adopt this remedy.

I saw a sadhak who had put buttons like this so tightly in the ears. When placed, no outside sounds were coming. One should do it this way. Let the inner voice always hear the name, hear the mantra, hear divine discourse. Otherwise, through these three—ears, tongue, and eye—sadhana grows, and through these three it is destroyed. A fish was seen—it was the eyes that saw it, that destroyed it. Sobhari Ji herself was regretting and saying, "Where was my secluded practice, and where am I now—from 50, it has grown to 5000, and the whole world has increased!" The ear-faculty, the speech-faculty, the eye-faculty—these are a great aid to sadhana and a great obstacle. If the sadhak remains slack with these, whatever the mind comes to see, that is seen; whatever the mind says, that is spoken; whatever the mind comes to hear, that is heard—one will burst.

When you run the name inside, believe me truly, it seems like poison when someone speaks to you. What need to talk? What do we need to know? What do we need to attain? We have understood what we need to know and attain. Every moment the bhajan of God is the essence of life. What need is there to talk? Complete irritation arises. Then what will they speak? What will they see? What will they hear? Because when there is love inside, in bhajan, then they can manage these ears, tongue, eyes. With very few words, the work gets done. Do not wish to see with the eye.

Everything is illusion. What is there to see? By continuously watching, eyes have rotted away. People have died. How many births have passed without being able to see anything? Those who want to see must protect their eyes. People are dying while eating. Their condition is constantly deteriorating. Even so, that epicurean one keeps asking for food. What is there to see? If a seeker watches the false play of the false world as if it is real, shame on them. The world itself is false, and on top of that these false TV serials, dramas, plays—what is there to see? We must see the Beloved, the Beloved Lord. Why have you come? A seeker has never come to the path of God for falsehood.

This false world with its false serials, cinema in it, and the desire to watch all this—therefore our eyes, speech and ears must be very careful indeed. Then sadhana becomes excellent, and if you slip then you will be corrupted. Let me tell you—from the Srimad Bhagavat Mahapuran. Maharshi Sukdev described the entire Raghu lineage to Parikshit Ji and told him that the last king of this dynasty was named Sumitra. Kush was the son—the son of the Lord—Lavkush; from that line came Atithit, and the fullness of that dynasty was with Maharaj Sumitra, and at the beginning of Kali Yuga that dynasty came to complete rest.

After Sumitra, no king of the Raghu dynasty was born. This is how the Ikshvaku dynasty continued until Sumitra. At the beginning of Kali Yuga it came to rest. The son of Ikshvaku was Maharaj Nemi. He initiated a yajna. He chose Maharshi Vashistha Ji as his acharya. Vashistha Ji said, "O King, Indra has already chosen me for his yajna. I will complete Indra's yajna and then perform yours. Until then, please wait." Hearing this, King Nemi was a great wise one, a great soul. He thought—what assurance is there for tomorrow? Whether my life remains or not.

And Vashistha Ji departed to conduct Indra's yajna. This supremely wise and great soul Nemi realized that this life is fleeting. One should not delay the work of God for tomorrow. "Do today what you should do tomorrow, do now what you should do today—destruction can happen in a moment. When will you devote yourself? No one knows if evening will come or not. Therefore we must remain absorbed in bhajan at all times." So he felt it was not right to delay. Such knowledge blazed forth in the heart of Maharaj Nemi. He said to the other learned great souls there, "Until our guru Vashistha Ji returns, please act as acharya, and when he arrives he will take charge of the entire work."

His guru, Vashistha Ji, had left to conduct Indra's yajna, and Nemi had his students begin the yajna. When Guru Vashistha Ji returned after completing Indra's yajna, he saw that they had made his students into an acharya and started the yajna. So he said, "You think you are very wise. You could not even wait for me. I curse you—you are full of pride in your thoughtfulness, knowledge and scholarship. Therefore your body shall perish right now. Your body shall leave." Nemi said, "Guru Dev, you have cursed me—is this according to dharma? What is my fault? You have cursed me in vain. You do not honor dharma out of greed, and being a guru you have cursed me needlessly."

"Therefore your body too shall perish. Your body too shall leave." Nemi Maharaj, full of austerity and knowledge, the bodiless king Nemi—the guru's curse took effect immediately, and the guru's body perished. And the guru Vashistha Ji, the embodiment of the Lord—the curse took effect immediately, and the disciple's body left too. Vashistha Ji abandoned his body and took birth from the womb of Urvasshi through Mitra and Varuna. The great sages who had come to King Nemi's yajna preserved the king's body with medicines.

When the yajna came to completion, the devas arrived. They prayed, saying that Vashistha Ji cursed without fault, and now that the king's body is intact, he should become alive. Maharaj Nemi should live. At that time the devas spoke to Maharaj Nemi's atman, but he said, "No, I do not accept a body now. My guru has freed me from the body, so I will not take on a body anymore. A thoughtful one does not love the body—they love God, the Lord as the self. Eventually the body was going to fall away anyway. My guru cursed me, and it fell away quickly. It was a great blessing. Now I will never take on a body again. I will never wear this body again."

Just as for a fish in water, death is a possibility everywhere, so for one who wears a body, there is only suffering, only suffering, problem after problem. Therefore I will not take on a body." The devas asked, "Then where will you dwell?" He said, "I will dwell in the eyes of every creature, and I will remain there meditating on God. That I am present there—the proof of this is that the eyelid blinks by itself. This is called nimis, the blinking. Maharaj Nemi will dwell in the rising and falling of the eyelid. My presence will be known from the existence of the eyelid rising and falling." The jewel of wisdom, the bodiless king Nemi, is now established in the eyes of all beings. Through this one can know that he is present.

After this, those great rishis thought that without a king, chaos would spread. So they churned Nemi's body with mantras. Then a prince was born from the corpse. Just as the Lord's appearance as Pruthu came from Vena's body, so when Maharaj Nemi's body was churned with mantras, the son who was born was Maharaj Janaka. Janaka Ji—born from Nemi's dead body, whom they called Videha and Vaideha. Vaideha—Janaka, and Mithila—because he was born from churning, they say that Mithilapuri was established by him.

Janaka Ji was very great. From him, the glorious Vaideshi Janaki appeared, who illuminates the leela of the divine. Through his devotion, through his penance, through his bhajan—when he was plowing the field for the sacrifice, the plow struck a pot and from that Sita Ji manifested. It was because of this that Janaka Ji became known as Sheeradhvaj. From Sheeradhvaj came Kushadhvaj, from Kushadhvaj came Dharmadhvaj, from Dharmadhvaj came Krithadhvaj, from Krithadhvaj came Keshadhvaj and Mithdhvaj came from Krithadhvaj. All these great souls and the rulers who were called Maithil, dwelling in Mithila Puri—I have given you this introduction. All of them were accomplished knowers dwelling in knowledge, they were self-realized, deeply skilled in atma-vidya. Even great yogeshwara like Yajnavalkya would humbly approach them for satsang, such was their spiritual grace.

This very Janaka Ji is said to be the guru of Sukadev Ji himself. Parikshit, I have been describing the solar dynasty up until now. Now I will describe the pure lunar dynasty. In this dynasty, great kings of immense pious renown are celebrated. In this lineage, the Avatar of Bhagwan Shri Krishna takes birth. In the solar dynasty, Bhagwan Shri Ramchandra appears, and in the lunar dynasty, Bhagwan Shri Krishna. From the navel lotus of the cosmic form, Bhagwan Narayana, Brahma Ji was born. From Brahma Ji came the son Atri.

Through his qualities, he was equal to Brahma Ji. From the eyes of this very Atri, the nectar-filled Moon manifested. The Moon appeared from the eyes of Atri Rishi. Brahma Ji made the Moon the lord of brahmins, herbs, and stars. The Moon conquered all three worlds and performed the royal sacrifice. But it is very strange. The Moon, who manifested from the eyes of such a great soul as Atri, and who conquered all three worlds and achieved success in the royal sacrifice—pride grew in him.

Pride grew in the Moon. Ko ras janma jag mahi prabhupta pah ja mad bhari—from pride and arrogance, great transgression arises. Brihaspati Ji's wife Tara was very beautiful. Brihaspati should certainly not have done such a thing, but the proud Moon committed a grave transgression. He enticed Tara, the wife of Brihaspati, and did what could not even be imagined. Brihaspati Ji tried hard to explain that this was a great sin, an act of unrighteousness. But when pride and arrogance take hold, they did not listen to the guru. In no way could either Tara abandon the Moon or the Moon abandon Tara. It is a most strange thing.

Tara, the wife of such a knower as Brihaspati Ji, became attached to the Moon, and the Moon—having attained sovereignty over the three worlds—such great transgression, betraying the guru's wife. This shows that this position, this status, this wealth, this beauty—all of it leads to hell. The Moon is supreme among the gods, completely pure. Shukracharya Ji saw an opportunity, and since he held internal enmity with Brihaspati Ji, he took the Moon's side. When Shukracharya Ji took the Moon's side, all the asura hosts sided with the Moon, and even Mahadev Ji loved the Moon greatly.

Angira Ji, the guru of learning and father of Brihaspati Ji—all those opposing Brihaspati Ji stood with the Moon. Mahadev Ji said: "Moon, you have done very wrong, very wrong indeed. Return Tara, or we shall side with Brihaspati Ji." The Moon is so dear to them that Shiva wears the full moon in his crown upon his head. Devraj Indra with all the gods alongside guru Brihaspati—now with Tara as the pretext, a great and terrible war was about to commence. Tara Ji did not understand that this one is the guru of her beloved, and she is the guru's wife, and their understanding of this did not penetrate.

Pride—because the Moon is very beautiful, and Tara Ji is also very beautiful—the wife of Brihaspati Ji slipped so far from her place. Brihaspati Ji's wife Tara Ji—well, the Moon is called God, the Sun and Moon are called God. Without worshipping God, no one's intellect can remain pure. Angira Ji went to Brahma Ji. "Maharaj, a terrible great war is about to break out." Brahma Ji came and scolded the Moon greatly, rebuking him. He said: "Release Tara into Brihaspati Ji's hands." When Tara Ji was given into Brihaspati Ji's hands, he saw she was pregnant—with another's child in my field. You must abandon it, abandon it at once. For Tara is a devi, do not fear. I will not reduce you to ashes, but abandon this child now." She was so beautiful that even so, Brihaspati Ji said to Tara: "You must abandon the child, and we shall accept you as my wife, as a devi, for no fault can touch you.

You are blameless." Hearing her husband's words, Tara Ji, deeply ashamed, abandoned the child. A god. A boy shining like gold. When the child manifested, Brihaspati Ji became captivated, and the Moon said: "This is my son, you have no claim." Brihaspati Ji said to him: "Now you should bow down. Do whatever you wish. Lord, forgive my mistake." The Moon said: "This brilliant son is mine, not yours, and you meditate and see for yourself whether he is mine or not." All the rishis said to Tara: "You alone tell us—whose is he?"

So out of shame, how could she admit it belonged to the moon? That radiant boy who manifested spoke to her and said: "You shame-bearer, why do you not speak of your own wrongdoing?" That boy scolded Tara. Brahma Ji said to Tara: "Tell us, for a mother alone knows who the true father of her child is." Then Tara spoke softly and said: "This is the son of the moon." Justice was served. Brihaspati Ji had been overcome with desire. Chandrama took that boy through Brahma Ji. Brahma Ji is a great judge. Brahma Ji gave that boy the name Buddha.

Because he possessed great wisdom and profound depth of intellect. Now Chandrama became very joyful upon obtaining Buddha. From Buddha came the birth of Pururavas through Ila's womb. One day in Indra's assembly, the celestial sage Narada described Pururavas's radiant qualities, his generosity, wealth and splendor, and Urvashi's heart was stirred. That apsara, the supreme celestial maiden, came to Earth to choose Pururavas as her husband. Pururavas, the foremost of men, was like embodied Kamadeva in his beauty. The beautiful Urvashi, steadying herself, chose Pururavas as her husband.

When Urvashi first came to Pururavas, he said: "Beautiful one, you are most worthy of reverence. You are the glory of the heavenly realm. Urvashi, who was born from the thigh of Lord Narayana—what service can this servant offer you in welcome?" Urvashi said: "O King, hearing of your beauty and glory, I have come from the heavenly realm. What woman exists whose eyes and heart would not be offered to a divine man such as you? I have come to be your wife. O King, we are apsaras. When we see someone whose form, beauty and qualities are praiseworthy, our hearts are drawn. Otherwise, without severe tapas, no one can even see us, much less touch us or go further. You are an ascetic. You are rich in tapas. I accept you as my husband. But great king, I have one condition. I entrust these two young lambs to you. They must be protected. The day they are taken away, you will not be able to hold me. I shall vanish. And I am a goddess, so I never eat food. I eat only ghee from a pure cow. And except for our union, I shall never see you naked. There are three things. I will always eat ghee, and except for our union I will never see you unclothed, and you must protect my two young lambs."

Pururavas accepted every condition. Then he said to Urvashi: "You are not fit for a man. Because you are a goddess. Your beauty is extraordinary. But you have shown grace in accepting me. Therefore I shall remain as your servant in your service. Whatever command you give, I shall obey." Emperor Pururavas and Urvashi—following the methods of the Kama Shastra, as husband and wife, their union was through the secret methods of the gods in Chaitrathvana, the pleasure forest, a realm of free wandering. From Urvashi's body the fragrance of lotus and saffron constantly flowed.

King Pururavas had no idea how many years had passed. When Indra saw that his tapas had weakened, he signaled Urvashi. Urvashi signaled the gandharvas. The gandharvas were the two young lambs. They took them away, and at that very moment the great king Pururavas was beside Urvashi. It was midnight. Urvashi said: "Great king, look—someone is taking our children. The two young lambs. Here you lie beside me like a coward, and my very life is in those children. You, who think yourself a great hero, could not save my children. And thieves have taken them." Men like this are found everywhere—those who speak brave words like heroes before women, but few actually display their valor. As if an elephant were pierced with a goad—now the great king's senses scattered. Except in union he was never to see her naked, but he grabbed his sword, completely naked, to defend them—Urvashi vanished. The madness that seized the great king—in that very state, naked, not putting on clothes—when Urvashi saw him naked outside their union, now awareness struck him that he had erred. "Oh Urvashi! Oh Urvashi!" Like a mad man, frenzied, distraught [sounds of anguish]. Sometimes on the banks of the Saraswati river, sometimes elsewhere, agitated by one longing alone—to see Urvashi once more. Though she is a goddess.

Urvashi took mercy. Here on the banks of the Saraswati, mad like a madman, "Oh Urvashi! Oh Urvashi!"—with five of her companions she appeared. The moment he saw Urvashi, it was as if his life returned. He said: "Cruel one, speak with me just for one moment. My heart is restless. My life is tormented." And she said: "Go, great king. I am no one's. I am no one's. When tapas grows, I am sent to diminish that tapas. I have no husband. I have no friend. No one is my own. I belong to no one." The great king said: "Goddess, this body, this emperor of emperors, is your servant."

"Do not say this. No, this body will die. And before your eyes, vultures and eagles will devour it." Listen great king—women are cruel in their compassion. We women are such that we are most heartless, we merely perform the drama of love. With how many ascetics have I been? With how many who were rich in tapas? What cruelty have they received from me? Such cruelty exists in my nature. If I become angered, for my own pleasure I can perform deeds of great boldness. When I, overcome by selfishness, speak words of love, that same I could murder. The fellowship of our women's hearts is only for the purpose of enchantment.

"Oh, simple people like you get trapped in our sweet talk and end up giving your heart. And when our austerity diminishes, we immediately kick them and abandon them, accepting a new man. Here there is austerity, there are goddesses. In the mortal world, if there is pleasure greater than one's own. This pride in beauty, this desire for pleasures—it reaches even the greatest. That is why even Brahma bows to those surrendered devotees who worship the Lord. Yet still, be patient. You are the King of Kings. Do not fear. If you have such longing, then seeing your pure love, we give you a boon.

"Once a year I will come and give you darshan, and then I will leave. Once a year, Raja Purva and Urvashi had offspring who expanded this lunar dynasty. In the Ekadashi Skanda, when Purva attained dispassion from Urvashi, the words that follow—Maharaj Purva only meditated on Urvashi. He was absorbed in meditation on Urvashi. Think, if you got just a glimpse of the Lord, how could anyone ever leave Him? This is a body created by Maya. Maharaj Purva pleased the fire deity with many sacrificial fires and desired to meet Urvashi.

"By performing sacrifices, in the Satya Yug before the Treta Yug, there was only Om as the mantra. In Om, the Vedas were contained. All the Vedas were embedded within it. The deity was only Lord Narayan. The fire was not three but only one, and the varna was also only one—the swan. At the beginning of the Treta Yug, from Purva itself arose the three Vedas and the three fires. Raja Purva accepted fire as his son and attained the world of Urvashi. Through austerity and sadhana for his entire life, devoted only to Urvashi, six sons were born to Urvashi from Maharaj Purva—Ayu, Shrutayu, Satyayu, Ray, Vijay, and Jay. Shrutayu's son was Vasuman. Satyayu's son was Shrutanjay. Ray had a son, and Jay had Amit. Vijay had Bhim. Bhim had Kancan. Kancan had Hotr. Hotr's son was Janu. This was the very Janu who was devoted to austerity, and Bhagiratha was bringing Ganga.

"At his hermitage, there was something, and he drank up the Ganga. Then Bhagiratha said, 'Maharaj, our ancestors remained that way. You drank all of the Ganga. You drank all of the Ganga.' Then there was great supplication. Then the Rishi Janu to the Ganga—that is why she received the name Jahnavi from him. Just as Agastya drank the ocean in his palm, so too did Janu drink the Ganga.

"Janu's son was Puru. Puru's son was Balak. Balak's son was Ajak. Ajak's son was Kush. Kush had four sons—Kushambu, Tanayavash, and Kushnab. From Kushambu came the Mahatma Gadhis. From the lineage of Vishvamitra, Gadhis' daughter was named Satyavati—very beautiful, pure-natured. So when the Rishi saw Gadhis' daughter Satyavati, he went to Gadhis and said, 'Now the desire has arisen in my heart to become a householder. Seeing your daughter, this came to me. So please give her to me in charity.' Rishi, such a Mahatma—well, he could not refuse. So he said, 'Maharaj, our daughter has one condition. Bring 1000 such horses and give them as a gift, whose entire body is white except for one ear which is only dark colored.' 1000 horses—he thought, 'Where could he ever bring them from?'

"When Richi Muni heard this from Gadhis, he meditated: 'Where are such horses?' Then it was revealed—with Varun. So he went directly to Varun and commanded, 'Give 1000 horses.' He gave them immediately. Great is the power of the Rishis. Now no question remained, Maharaj Gadhis. Now he would have to give.

"So Satyavati received water in the hand of Richi Muni. Much time passed. He remained in brahma meditation, never even speaking with Satyavati. His mind had come only toward household dharma. But these great chaste women never disturb their sadhana. One day Gadhis' wife said, 'Do you not know how powerful and austere your husband is? I too have no offspring except you, and you too have no offspring. Both Rishis—one day when he rose from meditation, Satyavati fell at his feet and said, 'We desire children, both myself and my mother.'

"Maharshi Richik said, 'Very well. He prepared a charu. Having cooked the charu, he divided it into two parts separately. One charu for his wife and one for his mother-in-law. And he told each of them different things. He told his mother-in-law to embrace the banyan tree. And he told his wife to embrace the peepal tree. Satyavati's mother understood that the father was a very powerful ascetic. 'He must have made the charu that gives sons especially for himself. So she said to her daughter, 'You take our charu. We will take your charu.' Due to delusion, she should not have done that. She should have obeyed her husband's orders. But due to delusion, when she ate, drank, and embraced the tree, Richik Muni said, 'You did exactly as I told you.' Then Satyavati with folded hands said, 'No, an error occurred. It is not that mother lied, but she said, "Give us the charu that you prepared for us." So we gave it out of delusion.'

"He said, 'You have done a terrible thing. Know that your son will be capable of punishing fierce people and will be fierce and wrathful in nature. And your brother will be a Brahma-knower, a Brahma Rishi. Your mother is from the Kshatriya lineage—Gadhis—and we are a Brahma Rishi. Our offspring, a Brahma Rishi, will appear. And from you will come one of fierce Kshatriya nature, a punisher.'

"Satyavati understood that her husband was all-powerful, so thinking it was right, she grasped his feet. For a son with fierce Kshatriya nature to be born from the womb of a Brahma Rishi's wife is reprehensible. Oh Lord, a mistake has occurred. Please show mercy.'

"Then he said, 'Very well, your son will be a mild-natured Brahma Rishi. But your grandson who will be born—he will have a fierce nature.'"

From the womb of Satyavati came the Brahma Rishi who was named Jamadagni Ji, and from the grandson's line came the manifestation of Lord Parashurama. After Satyavati Ji brought forth Jamadagni Ji, the effect of her austere, penance-filled body and her husband's influence was so great that her body became a river—she became the Kaushik River. The water-receiving ritual of Jamadagni Ji was performed by Renuka, daughter of Renu Rishi. From Renuka's womb, Jamadagni Ji had many sons including Vasuman, and the youngest son was Lord Parashurama Ji. And on the other side, from Gadh came Lord Vishwamitra Ji, manifesting through what the sages discovered.

The great Brahma Rishi, endowed with great austerity, tells Parikshit: The Lord took the form of Parashurama to end a dynasty's line. Twenty-one times He destroyed the Kshatriyas throughout the entire world. King Parikshit asked: Lord, what offense did the Kshatriyas commit that Parashurama Ji wandered about for twenty-one times and destroyed them across the whole Earth?

Shri Sukhadev Ji Maharaj says: O Parikshit, this happened in those times when the ruler of a dynasty, Shastraav Arjun, was a great, mighty and noble king. And especially, he had pleased Dattatreya Ji, the jewel among the Avdhuta. From Him he received one thousand arms, and these blessings: never to be defeated in battle by an enemy, never to lack any prosperity, and whatever he desired would be obtained. All these blessings he received from Lord Dattatreya Ji. Now unlimited strength, immense wealth, radiance, heroic fame, and physical power—everything was obtained from Dattatreya Ji. In a way, he himself became the great lord of yogis through Dattatreya Ji's grace.

Shastraav Arjun possessed such powers that from the finest to the finest, from the gross to the gross, he could take any form. With his great powers, like the wind itself, he could reach anywhere. Such powers he obtained from Dattatreya Ji.

One day, wearing a Vaijayanti garland around his neck, he was sporting in the waters of the Narmada with many beautiful women. Meanwhile, Ravana was conducting a digvijaya along the banks of the Narmada and had set up his tents. With five hundred arms on this side and five hundred arms on that side, Shastraav Arjun dammed up all the waters of the Narmada. Ravana's camp began to be flooded. Ravana asked: How did a flood come without rain? His servants said: O King, there is a hero who is playing in the water with women, and while playing, he is making the Narmada flow backwards!

Then Ravana said: Who is greater than us? Ravana became very arrogant, considering himself a great hero, and went to Shastraav Arjun, boasting of his valor. So to please the women, in sport, he seized Ravana. Shastraav Arjun locked him in a cage like a monkey and, taking him to his capital Mahishmati, kept the cage where his horses were. The ten-headed Ravana was in the cage, confined by the thousand-armed Shastraav Arjun with all his powers.

Then Maharaj Pulastya Ji came to know that Ravana, during his digvijaya, was locked in a cage at Mahishmati. Pulastya Ji went before Shastraav Arjun, and Shastraav Arjun worshipped him, for Pulastya Rishi commanded: Release him—he is our grandson. Shastraav Arjun released Ravana.

Now Shastraav Arjun's pride continued to grow, for he had made even Ravana, who was on a digvijaya, his captive. One day he went into the forest to hunt with his retinue. He became thirsty, and there was Jamadagni Ji's hermitage nearby. He arrived at Jamadagni Rishi's hermitage. The sage saw that a great king had come, and he thought: welcoming him is like welcoming the divine form itself.

In the forest there were only roots and fruits, but Kamadhenu was the name of Jamadagni Ji's cow—whatever one desires, it manifests. Now to welcome the ministers, army, and the king required such servants, such provisions, and all arrangements. Shastraav Arjun said: How could such arrangements be possible for a sage? So many soldiers, so many servants, so many vessels of metal and food! Everyone said: There is no cook anywhere—it is all the miracle of one cow. He said: We should have such a cow. What does a saint need it for?

Now Jamadagni Muni's prosperity came from Kamadhenu, and Shastraav Arjun became angry, when he should have been pleased that such a wonderful welcome was given. He ordered Jamadagni Rishi: Give Kamadhenu to our soldiers. Jamadagni Ji said: No, this is for the sustenance of sacrifices, for the service of the past. He said: I tell you only once; if necessary, I will seize it by force a second time.

Shastraav Arjun ordered: Seize Kamadhenu and take it away. Now Kamadhenu, crying out, was forcibly taken by Shastraav Arjun to Mahishmati.

When Parashurama Ji came in the evening, the hermitage was completely desolate. He asked his mother, and she told him: The entire tale of wickedness is Shastraav Arjun's doing. With the terrible axe in hand, Parashurama Ji—like a mighty lion that no one can subdue—went roaring to Mahishmati.

He was still in his revelry when Lord Parashurama Ji arrived before he could do anything else.

Parashurama Ji's appearance was most extraordinary: the axe in hand, a crown of matted hair on his head, three lines marked upon it. As soon as Shastraav Arjun lunged forward, Lord Parashurama Ji loosened his matted locks that gleamed like the sun, and wielding the axe in his hand, in a moment he destroyed the entire army. All the thousand arms that had been given by Lord Dattatreya, the jewel among the Avdhuta, he cut them all down. Such was the blow of the axe that none remained standing before him. Cutting off all the arms, when Parashurama Ji's power brought complete destruction, Shastraav Arjun's ten thousand sons, those ten thousand who had not yet been present and were separate from him—along with his entire retinue, he slew Shastraav Arjun.

Lord Parashurama rescued Kamadhenu and brought her to the hermitage. In the city of Mahishmati, the destruction of Arjuna was most remarkable. Jamadagni said, "Oh, oh Parashurama, what disturbance are you causing? That king was taking the cow away—why didn't you let him go? Why did you kill him? A king is the embodiment of all the gods. You have committed an offense. We are Brahmin rishis. Forgiveness is our strength. The world worships us because we are forgiving. Even your Brahma is established in the position of Brahma only through the strength of forgiveness."

"The glory of rishis is forgiveness. This is not a display of all-power. The Lord is pleased with you. Now you have become devoted to tapas. You have committed an offense, you have killed a king. This is even greater than Brahmahatya. Go, do penance while serving the pilgrimage sites and perform the atonement for this." Lord Parashurama knelt before Jamadagni and accepted his command. After a year of pilgrimage, he returned to his hermitage. Parashurama's mother Renuka had gone to the banks of the Ganges to gather water for her evening rituals. A mistake happened there.

In today's satsang it was said: through the eye, speech, ear—care is needed; an offense can arise from anyone. So there, the Gandharva king Chitratha was sporting in the water with the apsaras. As the Gandharva king played in the water, mother saw the play of his limbs and senses for some moments. It pleased her, but there was no desire, no impurity came. She simply watched and it pleased her, and she forgot that it was evening—the time for her husband's libations and rituals. It is written that his mind was drawn toward the Gandharva king's play. The Gandharva king was playing, her mind was drawn, she was watching Chitratha with the apsaras—how could it be that while Jamadagni was in such solitary, devoted worship, and mother Renuka watched Chitratha the Gandharva's play with the apsaras, simply finding it pleasant—but the time of sandhya passed. Bhagwan Jamadagni was waiting. How did this happen, that the evening ritual was neglected and Renuka had not yet returned with the water?

When she came to her senses, she became frightened. She had committed a grave offense. She came before the great sage, placed the pot of Ganges water, folded her hands and stood. Jamadagni the sage said, "I was watching. Your mind was drawn to watching the play of Chitratha the Gandharva. You are an offender. You are a sinner. How could you, as the wife of a Brahmin rishi, see such a thing? The punishment for this is death." With such strict command, he told the other sons, "Kill her." But none of the sons had the courage. Meanwhile, Lord Parashurama returned from his pilgrimage, bowed down.

He said, "Son, kill your mother and your brothers." Parashurama did not hesitate. At once, with his axe, he severed the heads of his mother and brothers. The Maharishi Jamadagni was very pleased and said, "Son, ask for whatever boon you wish." Parashurama said, "Let my mother and my brothers live. Let them not even have the memory that I killed them." At once they came alive. As Lord Parashurama spoke, they sat up as if awakened from sleep, completely safe. Parashurama knew how great and pure his father Jamadagni was, and how filled with the power of tapas.

He had performed the atonement for the killing of Arjuna. Parashurama sat in a corner of the hermitage, absorbed in meditation. After many days, the heart-burning of the sons of Arjuna—they came and saw Maharishi Jamadagni sitting in meditation in the fire chamber. He had no awareness of the outside world. They had come with a plan. They destroyed the entire hermitage. And mother Renuka was praying in great distress. They would not listen to anything and cut off Jamadagni's head. Jamadagni was in meditation. They did very wicked deeds in the hermitage.

Renuka cried out. Her son Parashurama was in meditation, Lord Parashurama. Hearing his mother's anguished cry, he ran with his axe. When he came close, he saw that they had cut off Jamadagni's head. Parashurama was filled with extreme, extreme anger. He said to his mother, "Do not lament. The mother of a heroic son does not lament. Today I make a vow that I will destroy all the Kshatriyas in the world. Not a single Kshatriya will remain in the world." In the story you heard earlier, beneath a ghagra, one Kshatriya boy was hidden—what was his name, they forgot—they hid him near the thigh bone. Only he survived; from him the Kshatriya lineage continued. It came up in the discussion earlier. Lord Parashurama, remembering Bhagwan Shiva, took the vow that there would be no Kshatriyas left in the world.

Parashurama went to the city of Mahishmati and cut off the heads of ten thousand sons separately and destroyed the entire city. Heaps like mountains of severed heads, he piled them up, cutting, cutting, and saying, "O slayer of Brahmins, Parashurama will destroy you." He made a river of blood flow. So many thorns—those who were kings, who were Kshatriyas, enemies of Brahmins—the hearts of the Kshatriyas trembled. The Kshatriyas of that time who had become of demoniac nature were destroyed for this reason. He manifested himself, and to make his father Jamadagni's killing the means, he went around twenty-one times and cut them all down. Then he went around twice more, twenty-one times circling the entire world, he made five lakes of blood at Samantapanchak, cutting, cutting, and then he took his father's head that had been preserved with his mother, joined it, and brought him back to life.

He destroyed the Kshatriyas twenty-one times. Then he brought his father's head and joined it, and then afterward, for everyone's atonement, he performed the yagna, conquered the seven directions and donated the land to the Brahmin rishis. After this, he bathed after the yagna and, free from all sins, Parashurama became as radiant as cloud, sand, and sun. Through the memory of Jamadagni, Parashurama gained a divine form. Honored by Lord Parashurama, he stands today as the seventh rishi in the circle of the Saptarishis. Lord Shri Hari Parashurama came as the lotus-eyed one, the son of Jamadagni, and destroyed the Kshatriyas and brought about the welfare of the world.

Even today, Bhagavan Parashurama Ji resides on Mount Mahendrachala. In his peaceful form, accomplished gandharvas and charanas sing of his deeds. When the omnipotent universal Lord Bhagavan Sri Hari took the form of Ram, and the bow was broken - upon hearing of this destruction, joy arose in Parashurama Ji's heart that another kshatriya had come forth, one who through the lila of destruction... who had accomplished what our guru had set out to do.

Through meditation he saw - they had reached Videharaj Janak's city of Mithila. At their very approach, the earth trembled. See, Parashurama Ji is coming - as many as could flee, did flee.

No, they returned to his feet, speaking their father's name. Brother, such a simple heart - upon seeing this we understood: our lifespan is complete. Whoever it may be, this Rudra-form Bhagavan Parashurama - with his father's name we offer complete prostrations. Maharaj Janak brought Sita Ji, and Vishvamitra brought Ram and Lakshman to bow before him. Bhagavan Parashurama asked: "Janak, who in this assembly is there who has broken the bow of our guru, Bhagavan Shankar? Let the entire assembly abandon this one and leave, or let this one abandon the assembly. Otherwise all will become ours."

He was not merely speaking. He destroyed the kshatriyas 21 times, and there was great wailing throughout Janakpur. Janaki Ji's mother, taken aside, began to weep. Everything had been ruined. But then Ram married Siya. Parashurama was brandishing his axe outside. Lakshman said: "Maharaj, Maharaj, please show some restraint. You have taken the peaceful form of a sage, yet you bear a fearsome appearance. How repeatedly do you dishonor the dignity of sages? Whose son is this, teaching us? Parashurama, you are teaching us!"

Lakshman said: "Guru, there is no need for Vishvamitra to tell. You have told us many times. You yourself have told us many times how you cut down kshatriyas with your axe. You have told this well enough, Maharaj. This is not a matter of gourds where your finger destroys them. Don't keep wielding your axe in anger. This is not about splitting vegetables - that your finger-glance would kill us. Maharaj, we are Raghuvanshis."

Whenever Parashurama's anger increased, Ram would step forward. With folded hands he would plead with him. Then Parashurama said: "The first axe will strike." To Ram he said: "The first - because when anger comes upon me, this young prince provokes it, and though I try to teach him he does not listen, yet he pleads with me, and it seems to me that he is the one who broke the bow." Ram said: "Yes, only a servant of yours, only your own servant could dare to do such a thing. A servant serves the master - he does not commit offense against him." Growing very angry, Parashurama said: "Beware! May you not be fearless - whoever fears you..."

The first thing is, whoever fears you becomes fearless, because your form is such. And the second thing we are telling you: we are Raghuvanshis. Even if Death itself challenges us face to face, we do not step back. When Bhagavan Sri Ram's profound words fell upon Parashurama's ears, and their eyes met, Parashurama trembled and said: "Resolve one doubt of mine. String the bow. Some doubt has arisen in my heart." The bow quickly came, and in play he strung it. But on Bhagavan Sri Hari's Sharanga bow, the string can be placed only by Sri Hari himself.

"You are Sri Hari. You are our Bhagavan." And he bowed at the Lord's feet. When the string was placed, Bhagavan Sri Ram said: "I will either destroy your lifespan or your tapas - because an arrow does not return in vain." Parashurama said: "Lord, I am your dependent. Destroy the tapas that I can perform again. But do not destroy my lifespan and supernatural powers and the like."

Bhagavan aimed at Parashurama's tapas and released the arrow. From that day until today, remaining in a peaceful disposition, without harming or killing anyone, Bhagavan Parashurama resides on Mount Mahendrachala. Great accomplished gandharvas sing of the Lord's deeds.

Maharaj Gadhi had a son, radiant as blazing fire - Vishvamitra Ji. This was to be in place of Jamadagni Ji, but it happened the other way. Vishvamitra was born into a kshatriya lineage, yet through his tapas and Brahmic radiance he became a Brahma-rishi. Vishvamitra had 100 sons. The youngest was named Madhuchhanda, so all the sons became known by the name Madhuchhanda. Vishvamitra adopted the son of a Bhriguvanshi, his nephew Suna, also called Dev Raj, as his own son, and told his sons: "Consider him your elder brother."

This was that famous Bhriguvanshi Suna who was brought as a sacrificial animal in Harishchandra's yajna. Vishvamitra, by invoking Prajapati, Varun and other deities, freed him from his bonds. In the yajna of the gods, this Suna was given to Vishvamitra by the deities. Therefore, given by the gods - in the lineage of Dev Raj, Devaraj became known as a great tapasvi. The sons of Vishvamitra who refused to acknowledge Suna as their elder brother - Vishvamitra, angered, cursed them: "Go, become m'lechchhas!" And from them arose the m'lechchhas - 49 brothers became m'lechchhas. Then Vishvamitra commanded his youngest son Madhuchhanda to righteously guide these 50 younger brothers.

One was accepted as an elder brother. The sons who followed Vishvamitra Ji's orders became greatly praiseworthy and blessed in their family. Even though one was from another gotra, Vishvamitra Ji ordered that he would be considered part of his own gotra. Vishvamitra Ji also had sons named Ashtaka, Harit, Jay, Kritman, and others. In this way, many divisions came about in the Kausik gotra among Vishvamitra Ji's descendants. These Chhatravrut and Raj kings belong to the lineage in which Lord Sri Krishna takes avatara. Their description is what is being presented here. The remaining discussion from before continues ahead.

Jai to Shri Radha Vallabh Lal.

This text is taken from auto-generated captions of the video—there may be errors in the words. Please listen to the video for the authentic version.

Original video: Shri Hit Radha Kripa (YouTube)